Gaza's Rafah border crossing has reopened but few people get through

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — When the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt finally reopened this week, Palestinian officials heralded it as a “window of hope” after two years of war as a fragile ceasefire deal moves forward.

But that hope has been sidetracked by disagreements over who should be allowed through, hourslong delays and Palestinian travelers' reports of being handcuffed and interrogated by Israeli soldiers.

Far fewer people than expected have crossed in both directions. Restrictions negotiated by Israeli, Egyptian, Palestinian and international officials meant that only 50 people would be allowed to return to Gaza each day and 50 medical patients — along with two companions for each — would be allowed to leave.

But over the first four days of operations, just 36 Palestinians requiring medical care were allowed to leave for Egypt, plus 62 companions, according to United Nations data. Palestinian officials say nearly 20,000 people in Gaza are seeking to leave for medical care that they say is not available in the war-shattered territory.

Amid confusion around the reopening, the Rafah crossing was closed Friday and Saturday.

The Rafah crossing is a lifeline for Gaza, providing the only link to the outside world not controlled by Israel. Israel seized it in May 2024, though traffic through the crossing was heavily restricted even before that.

Several women who managed to return to Gaza after its reopening recounted to The Associated Press harsh treatment by Israeli authorities and an Israeli-backed Palestinian armed group, Abu Shabab. A European Union mission and Palestinian officials run the border crossing, and Israel has its screening facility some distance away.

Rana al-Louh, anxious to return two years after fleeing to Egypt with her wounded sister, said Israeli screeners asked multiple times why she wanted to go back to Gaza during questioning that lasted more than six hours. She said she was blindfolded and handcuffed, an allegation made by others.

“I told them I returned to Palestine because my husband and kids are there,” al-Louh said. Interrogators told her Gaza belonged to Israel and that “the war would return, that Hamas won’t give up its weapons. I told him I didn’t care, I wanted to return.”

Asked about such reports, Israel's military replied that "no incidents of inappropriate conduct, mistreatment, apprehensions or confiscation of property by the Israeli security establishment are known.”

The Shin Bet intelligence agency and COGAT, the Israeli military body that handles Palestinian civilian affairs and coordinates the crossings, did not respond to questions about the allegations.

The long questioning Wednesday delayed the return to Gaza of al-Louh and others until nearly 2 a.m. Thursday.

Later that day, U.N. human rights officials noted a “consistent pattern of ill-treatment, abuse and humiliation by Israeli military forces.”

“After two years of utter devastation, being able to return to their families and what remains of their homes in safety and dignity is the bare minimum,” Ajith Sunghay, the agency’s human rights chief for the occupied Palestinian territories, said in a statement.

Officials who negotiated the Rafah reopening were clear that the early days of operation would be a pilot. If successful, the number of people crossing could increase.

Challenges quickly emerged. On the first day, Monday, Israeli officials said 71 patients and companions were approved to leave Gaza, with 46 Palestinians approved to enter. Inside Gaza, however, organizers with the World Health Organization were able to arrange transportation for only 12 people that day, so other patients stayed behind, according to a person briefed on the operations who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

Israeli officials insisted that no Palestinians would be allowed to enter Gaza until all the departures were complete. Then they said that since only 12 people had left Gaza, only 12 could enter, leaving the rest to wait on the Egyptian side of the border overnight, according to the person briefed on the operations.

Crossings picked up on the second day, when 40 people were allowed to leave Gaza and 40 to enter. But delays mounted as many returning travelers had more luggage than set out in the agreement reached by negotiators and items that were forbidden, including cigarettes and water and other liquids like perfume. Each traveler is allowed to carry one mobile phone and a small amount of money if they submit a declaration 24 hours ahead of travel.

Each time a Palestinian was admitted to Egypt, Israeli authorities allowed one more into Gaza, drawing out the process.

The problems continued Wednesday and Thursday, with the numbers allowed to cross declining. The bus carrying Wednesday's returnees from the crossing did not reach its drop-off location in Gaza until 1:40 a.m. Thursday.

Still, some Palestinians said they were grateful to have made the journey.

As Siham Omran’s return to Gaza stretched into early Thursday, she steadied herself with thoughts of her children and husband, whom she had not seen for 20 months. She said she was exhausted, and stunned by Gaza’s devastation.

“This is a journey of suffering. Being away from home is difficult,” she said. “Thank God we have returned to our country, our homes, and our homeland.”

Now she shares a tent with 15 family members, using her blouse for a pillow.

Elhennawy reported from Cairo and Geller from New York. Associated Press writer Josef Federman in Jerusalem contributed to this report.

Find more of AP’s coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

Siham Omran, 54, recently returned from Egypt after completing medical treatment, cooks food over a fire beside her tent in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Siham Omran, 54, recently returned from Egypt after completing medical treatment, cooks food over a fire beside her tent in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Rana al-Louh, 45, sits with her granddaughter, Sumaya Abu Suleiman, 3, inside the tent where they live, which had been erected in a schoolyard converted into a shelter in Nuseirat, in the central Gaza Strip, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Siham Omran, 54, recently returned from Egypt after completing her medical treatment, looks at the tents of displaced people next to her that were set up in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Palestinians carry the belongings of relatives arriving in Gaza from Egypt following the long-awaited reopening of the Rafah border crossing, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, early Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Palestinians patients and their relatives gather to board a bus in Khan Younis before they head to the Rafah crossing, leaving the Gaza Strip for medical treatment abroad, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

CALI, Colombia (AP) — A car bomb exploded Saturday in southwestern Colombia, the army said, a day after conservative political neophyte Abelardo de la Espriella was sworn in as Colombia’s new president.

The army alleged the attack was carried out by two dissident groups of the now-defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC. The groups did not accept the peace agreement that FARC signed a decade ago with the Colombian government.

The explosion took place at a toll plaza on the Pan-American Highway, the main road in the country's southwest. The army said two security guards suffered minor injuries in the attack. One of the guards told authorities that the explosion was caused by a vehicle that had been abandoned by an individual who fled on a motorcycle.

The affected road connects the departments of Cauca and Valle del Cauca, whose capital, Cali, hosted Friday’s swearing-in ceremony for de la Espriella. During his inaugural speech, he outlined his security policy and warned illegal groups that “they have two paths: submit to the rule of law or confront the security forces.”

The army on Saturday said on social media that soldiers were securing the area and using trained dogs to search for other explosive devices. Scattered around the toll plaza were parts of the vehicle, including the charred chassis.

The explosion woke up families who live in houses located a few yards (meters) from the crime scene. Elizabeth Zapata, 57, said she felt the blast wave “lift them out of bed” and the windows shattered. Her family members, who live with several children, “arrived with shards of glass embedded in their backs.”

Cauca Gov. Jorge Octavio Guzmán told reporters he believes the attacks are intended to isolate the department in order to maintain control over thousands of hectares.

“This is not an isolated incident; it is systematic," he said.

Minister of Transportation Elsa Noguera condemned the attack and said work was underway to restore traffic in the area.

“Colombia will not kneel before violence, nor will it allow the destruction of the infrastructure that connects our regions,” she wrote on social media.

Also on Saturday, de la Espriella announced the transfer of 117 prisoners linked to the previous administration’s peace talks to eight maximum-security prisons. The measure, according to the country’s corrections agency, aims to “regain permanent control of the prisons” and “contain any capacity of criminal organizations” to coordinate illicit activities from within prisons. De la Espriella has rejected the dialogue with armed groups promoted by his predecessor, Gustavo Petro.

With no prior political experience, the 48-year-old de la Espriella, a lawyer and businessperson, narrowly defeated Iván Cepeda, a progressive senator and Petro ally, in a June runoff election in a polarized political climate.

His term begins with a robust opposition led by Petro, who refused to acknowledge his victory and insisted on alleged fraud despite the official declaration from the electoral authority and the positive assessment from international observers.

Molina reported from Quito, Ecuador.

A soldier walks through a toll plaza along the Pan-American Highway damaged in a car bomb explosion that the army blamed on FARC dissident groups in Santander de Quilichao, Colombia, Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Santiago Saldarriaga)

Colombia's President Abelardo de la Espriella reviews a military parade following his inauguration in Cali, Colombia, Friday, Aug. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)

Soldiers walk through a toll plaza along the Pan-American Highway damaged in a car bomb explosion that the army blamed on FARC dissident groups in Santander de Quilichao, Colombia, Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Santiago Saldarriaga)

Colombia's President Abelardo de la Espriella receives the ceremonial staff from Senate President Honorio Henriquez during his inauguration in Cali, Colombia, Friday, Aug. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

A soldiers walks through a toll plaza along the Pan-American Highway damaged in a explosion that the army blamed on FARC dissident groups in Santander de Quilichao, Colombia, Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Santiago Saldarriaga)

Colombia's President Abelardo de la Espriella delivers his inaugural address after taking the oath of office in Cali, Colombia, Friday, Aug. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)